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Smoking was limited on UCLA’s campus before Monday, with smokers being prohibited from lighting up indoors or within 25 feet of buildings. Now, UCLA is one of about 1,000 other campuses to go completely smoke free. The system’s president has vowed to make all 10 UC campuses smoke-free by January 2014. Angie Crouch reports from Westwood for the NBC4 News at 5p.m. on April 22, 2013. (Published Monday, Apr 22, 2013)

Updated at 10:12 PM PDT on Monday, Apr 22, 2013

Smokers at UCLA are getting a course they didn't sign up for: an "educational" tobacco ban.

Starting Monday, students caught on the wrong end of a smoldering cigarette will be educated about the dangers of smoking and counseled to "seek treatment for tobacco dependence," according to the policy.

Students, staff and faculty alike are subject to the sweeping ban. It covers all University of California, Los Angeles property, including on-campus residences and off-campus sites. And it forbids tobacco products of all kinds -- cigarettes, cigars, water pipes, e-cigarettes, chewing tobacco, and any other preparation of the plant.

The ban comes after Mark Yudoff, president of the UC system, sent a January 2012 letter to chancellors asking them to craft smoke-free policies for their campuses within two years. UCLA was the first to do so following Yudoff's letter.

UCLA's policy mentions just two exceptions: Cigarettes can be smoked for university-approved research, or for "ceremonial use ... with prior approval of the sponsoring department, the UCLA Events Office and the Fire Marshal's Office."

A Tobacco Free Steering Committee is in charge of the educational aspect of the ban.

The campus newspaper, the Daily Bruin, reported that students who violate the ban won't be cited, but could eventually be subject to disciplinary action if they repeatedly break the rule. University employees could also face consequences, the paper reported.